They say home is wherever you hang your hat, and for Angie Gaines, two addresses – one in Highland Park and another in Kaufman – are where the Park Cities resident divides her time.

Located 30 miles southeast of Dallas, Golden Curls Ranch has been Gaines’ primary base since last February, when she traded a wardrobe of suits and a full-time career as a realtor for blue jeans and life in the country. Nestled on a 40-acre parcel just off a winding country road, the ranch Gaines oversees boasts American Bashkir Curly horses, Curly Mustangs,  llamas, donkeys, Boer goats, a herd of longhorns and several other animals, all living together on the rolling land she mows and maintains herself.

But the job does not come without a support system provided to Gaines by her tight-knit family. During the week, Gaines helps her husband, Henry, run a more than 30-year-old commercial realty business remotely while she tends to the ranch. The company, Gaines Real Estate, is a family affair, operated with sons Martin and Andrew, both Highland Park High School graduates. Gaines’ son, Nicholas, is a junior at the school. The family spends evenings and weekends together and plans to move out to the country upon Nicholas’ graduation next year.

             “I was a helicopter mom; I was always in the PTA,” Gaines said. “Before we moved to Park Cities I was also PTA president of Lake Dallas ISD. We went through football, all the activities; it’s nonstop fun.”

            When Martin graduated, Gaines took a deep breath and reevaluated her life.

            “Between cafeteria duty and your own job, you get accustomed to that schedule,” Gaines said. “All of a sudden your child leaves and you say, ‘Gosh, what do I do now?’”

            A family friend and member of the Park Cities Rotary Club introduced Gaines to Equest Therapeutic Horsemanship in Wylie, where she began to volunteer. It came naturally to the North Carolina native, who grew up riding horses.

            “There I found other moms just like me who have lots to give,” Gaines said of the organization where she is a volunteer trainer. “You get so much more back than you give. That really spoke to me.”

             When son Andrew graduated the following year, the Gaineses began looking for a place to spend their retirement. They found a property close enough to Dallas to make the transition work and soon moved in, working together to put finishing touches on a barn, fencing and the ranch house.

            The animals came next, with the Gaineses searching all over Texas to add breeds to their ever-growing herd. Always up for an adventure, Gaines’ sons and husband initially overcame growing pains in their role as ranch hands.

            “Coach Randy Allen did an awesome job training Andrew to be a defensive lineman, but he was no match for those llamas!” Gaines said with a laugh. “We’d never encountered anything like them.”

             The pride and glory of the ranch is its horses; Renegait Cinnamon River, Renegait Chesterfield, Warrior Mead Berndt Lakota, Jubilee’s Curly J and Curly Mustang mares Copper D’s Golden Red and Golden Red’s Nevada Blossom. After reading an article on the Curly horse’s gentle demeanor and intelligence, Gaines and her family decided the breed was a natural fit for their ranch, which is named for the horses’ characteristic mane.

            Gaines is particularly fond of Cinnamon River, who she rides competitively each month with the Independent Professional Horse Development Association in Greenville. She also serves as secretary of the Curly Horse Rescue and looks forward to opening up her ranch to others seeking to get back to nature.

             “It’s just nice to get to know yourself again,” Gaines said. “I think when we find ourselves in the traffic on Central Expressway and with all the deadlines and commitments, we forget about what’s important. Our family is always there for each other and that’s what’s important to me. I’m able to be the person I am because of who they are.”

MORE INFO

Visit goldencurlsranch.com.

For more information on Equest, visit equest.org.